(19)
(11) EP 1 667 486 A3

(12) EUROPEAN PATENT APPLICATION

(88) Date of publication A3:
21.07.2010 Bulletin 2010/29

(43) Date of publication A2:
07.06.2006 Bulletin 2006/23

(21) Application number: 05256567.8

(22) Date of filing: 24.10.2005
(51) International Patent Classification (IPC): 
H04R 3/02(2006.01)
H04M 11/00(2006.01)
 H04M 3/56(2006.01)
(84) Designated Contracting States:
AT BE BG CH CY CZ DE DK EE ES FI FR GB GR HU IE IS IT LI LT LU LV MC NL PL PT RO SE SI SK TR
Designated Extension States:
AL BA HR MK YU

(30) Priority: 15.11.2004 JP 2004330743

(71) Applicant: Sony Corporation
Tokyo 141 (JP)

(72) Inventors:
  • Kawaguchi, Takayoshi c/o Sony Corporation
    Shinagawa-ku Tokyo 141 (JP)
  • Yasui, Hiroyuki c/o Sony Corporation
    Shinagawa-ku Tokyo 141 (JP)

(74) Representative: Mills, Julia et al
D Young & Co LLP 120 Holborn
London EC1N 2DY
London EC1N 2DY (GB)

   


(54) Microphone systems and microphone apparatus


(57) A microphone system including a main unit for controlling the entire system and microphones having cascade connections from the main unit assuming the main-unit side upstream and the opposite side downstream. The microphone includes communication control means (2) for controlling data transmitted between the main unit and microphones, sound input means (3) for converting collected sound into a digital signal, echo cancellation means (4) for eliminating an echo component in the sound signal, and sound-information generation means (5) for updating the sound information by adding the sound signal of the self-microphone to the sound information of the downstream microphones and upstream transmitting the up data including the updated sound information. The microphone transmits the down data transmitted from the main unit to the down-most microphone in sequence in accordance with the cascade connection and transmits the up data from the down-most microphone to the main unit in reverse sequence.







Search report